Telecoms that contravene the Fraud Hazard Prevention Act (詐欺犯罪危害防制條例) and are consequently punished would be assigned with a limited number of telephone numbers within a designated period of time, an amendment to Regulations for Applying and Allocating Telecommunications Numbers (電信號碼申請及核配辦法) proposed by the Ministry of Digital Affairs said.
The amendment is subject to a 60-day public review before it takes effect.
The amendment is designed to reinforce the management of four-digit numbers that begin with “19,” which are usually assigned to government agencies offering emergency assistance, social aid organizations and charities, the ministry said yesterday.
Photo: Hsu Tzu-ling, Taipei Times
Some of the widely known numbers include the COVID-19 prevention hotline 1922, the Taipei City Government’s hotline for residents 1999 and Taiwan Railway Corp’s hotline 1933 for people to call when they see objects on railway lines.
Telephone numbers are rare national resources, so to prevent these special numbers from being abused for fraud, they are generally assigned to government agencies and state-run corporations, the ministry said.
As private organizations would be able to apply to use the special numbers, the regulations need to be amended to reinforce the management of the numbers, it said.
The amendment stipulates the conditions under which individuals and organizations must voluntarily return special service numbers to the government. When changing the use of these special numbers, they must file applications and secure approval from the government before they are allowed to continue using the numbers, the ministry said.
The amendment also lists the standards that must be met before individuals and organizations can apply for special service numbers. It also authorizes the ministry to conduct random inspections to ensure that the numbers are not abused and users are obligated to comply with the inspections.
Meanwhile the ministry has also proposed an amendment to the Subsidy, Reward and Assistance Regulations for Promoting Industry Innovation (數位發展部協助產業創新活動補助獎勵及輔導辦法), which authorizes it to subsidize, reward and assist digital industries in developing technology to deter fraud.
The amendment is subject to a 30-day public review period, the ministry said.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
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Many Japanese couples are coming to Taiwan to obtain donated sperm or eggs for fertility treatment due to conservatism in their home country, Taiwan’s high standards and low costs, doctors said. One in every six couples in Japan is receiving infertility treatment, Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare data show. About 70,000 children are born in Japan every year through in vitro fertilization (IVF), or about one in every 11 children born. Few people accept donated reproductive cells in Japan due to a lack of clear regulations, leaving treatment in a “gray zone,” Taichung Nuwa Fertility Center medical director Wang Huai-ling (王懷麟)
PROXIMITY: Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location, the Executive Yuan official said Taiwan plans to boost cooperation with the Czech Republic in semiconductor development due to Prague’s pivotal role in the European IC industry, Executive Yuan Secretary-General Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said. With Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) building a wafer fab in the German city of Dresden, a Germany-Czech Republic-Poland “silicon triangle” is forming, Kung said in a media interview on the weekend after returning from a visit to Prague. “Prague is closer to Dresden than Berlin is, so Taiwanese firms are expected to take advantage of the Czech capital’s location,” he said. “Taiwan and Prague have already launched direct flights and it is